I feel like I’m always on the hunt. What am I hunting for? I’m hunting for those small nuggets of inspiration. Those small words of wisdom that ring loud and clear in my head and that I say, “Others need to hear this too!” These thoughts, ideas, and tools help us to make it over the hurdles that present themselves in our lives on a daily basis. We all have hurdles, those of us who have been diagnosed with a chronic or other life-altering illness just have a few more hurdles than the masses.

When watching television you see a movie trailer come on and then you turn to the person sitting next to you and say, “That was probably the best part of the movie.” Yesterday I caught a glimpse, that special nugget that we wait for and when it arrives I hope you’re ready for it (I always have a pen and paper ready for just such occasions).

The nugget comes from the new movie, How Do You Know, with Reese Witherspoon, Paul Rudd, Owen Wilson, and Jack Nicholson. The nugget comes from Paul Rudd’s character when he says, “We’re all one small adjustment from making our lives work.” How can one small phrase catch the attention of what will be millions of people…thank you good writing!

So what’s the one small adjustment you need to make following your diagnosis to make your life work? It can be anything because there are so many things that change following the diagnosis. It may be an attitudinal shift, a spiritual shift, or even a physical shift. It may be go back to Monday’s post about Naomi Judd, working to become invitational not confrontational. Perhaps you will be invited to expand your social support network. This type of shift promotes health and healing by releasing negative energy and punctuating the healing power of human connection.

I’ve mentioned in the past that my mother was diagnosed with diabetes about a year ago. Her small adjustment was shifting her diet (she’s like me…she loves carbs). She was already exercising, but she increased her amount of exercise just a bit. We’re not talking about becoming a raw food vegan, but small adjustments that will make big changes in how you handle your diagnosis.

We all know about the body-mind connection. What if you decided to call an end to the pity party. I’m not saying not to occasionally feel sad about the diagnosis, but to sit in the “woe is me” mentality will bring down your immune system just as quickly as biology.

I’d love to know what your small adjustment is or will be that will make your life work better following your diagnosis. Let’s share our adjustments so we can see it’s really possible!